A former director in Gov. Ted Strickland's administration was sentenced yesterday to a year in prison for using an Internet site to promote a 17-year-old prostitute.

In sentencing 46-year-old Robert McFadden, Judge Tim Horton said he cannot tolerate "the sexual exploitation of our children."

McFadden, of Hyland Drive in Dublin, was director of the governor's Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, but he was also a sex-addicted purveyor of a Web site that promoted and ranked Columbus-area prostitutes, he told the judge in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

McFadden pleaded guilty in July to two counts of compelling prostitution. He could have been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

McFadden was sweating heavily in court yesterday and had removed his wedding ring and emptied his pockets, expecting an immediate trip to prison. Horton instead gave him two weeks to report.

His wife and several supporters had written letters to the judge saying that the arrest has turned McFadden's life around. Since then, his bipolar disorder has been diagnosed and he has begun sex-addiction counseling, his attorney, Keith Golden, said.

The sentence requires McFadden to register as a sex offender for the next 25 years. He might also have to sell his house, which is within 1,000 feet of a school, Golden said.

Prosecutors said McFadden took photographs of a 17-year-old prostitute he befriended and posted them on a site for men looking for companionship. Despite writing that he had recommended the girl for sex, McFadden denied ever having sex with her, Golden said.

Columbus police learned of the activity during an online sex sting in January. They said McFadden used aliases such as "Sullivant Guy," "Broad Street Guy" and "God O Thunder."

Strickland hired him in 2007 to lead an agency created to make it easier for religious organizations to compete for public funding. He was transferred to the state prison system and then laid off because of budget cuts.

"You were fronting as a volunteer, a good public servant and a community asset; and on the other side, you were promoting prostitution, whether it be old-school pimping or new-school pimping on the Internet," Horton told him.

McFadden apologized to his family, the community and law enforcement.

"I am now living in a positive manner," he said. "I pray for that girl every day that she moves forward and finds her way."

Prosecutors said the girl has moved out of Columbus and is no longer a prostitute.